John Newton, it is said, was very plain and practical in his addresses, preaching only Jesus Christ as the Savior of sinners.
A friend of his desired him to visit a woman in prison. He was informed of her wicked way of life, and therefore spoke strongly of the terrors of the Lord and the curses of the law. She listened a while and then laughed in his face.
Upon this he changed his note and spoke feelingly of the Savior of sinners—of what He had done and how He had suffered for guilty, lost souls. He had not talked long in this strain before he saw the tears in her eyes and flowing down her cheeks.
At length she interrupted him, crying, "Oh, sir, do you think there can be any hope of mercy for me?”
John Newton answered, "Yes, if you feel your need and are willing to seek Him in God's appointed way. I am sure salvation is as free for you as for me.”
"Ah, if I had known that," she answered, "I would not have been in this prison! I long ago settled it in my mind that I was utterly lost—that I had sinned beyond all possibility of forgiveness. That made me desperate.”
He visited her several times in the prison; and when she was sent away to serve her sentence he had good reason to believe that she was truly converted. Christ crucified is the wisdom and power of God.